


The virtues of fire alarms

by zoeteniets



Series: It's a cliché for a reason, honey [3]
Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Fire Alarms, Jock Straps, M/M, Robert is obsessed with Aaron's arse, Scars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-06
Updated: 2016-11-06
Packaged: 2018-08-29 12:08:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,417
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8488948
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zoeteniets/pseuds/zoeteniets
Summary: Robert moves into a flat in the city centre after his marriage breaks down. The building he lives in has a problem with its fire alarms. He may or may not have a crush on his neighbour.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is in response to an anon prompt that I stole off smittenwithsugden asking for an au where Aaron and Robert are neighbours. This fic was also inspired by 3 AM by Wolves_of_Innistrad over in the Teen Wolf fandom. 
> 
> As this fic is au I have kept Aaron's surname as Livsey so that Robert doesn't recognise him as being from Emmerdale. 
> 
> This is my first au for this fandom!

He chose the flat because it was in the ideal location. Close to the city centre, but not so close that he would be regularly woken up by revellers on a night out. Getting a good night’s sleep was very important to Robert, which was why he was so keen to relocate to the city once his marriage to Chrissie broke down. No point traveling to and from the far ends of civilisation when he could just as well rent a ‘bachelor pad’ and get a few hours’ extra kip.

Which is why he was terribly and overwhelmingly disappointed to be woken up at 3 am by a blaring fire alarm. Still, he’d rather be awake and hating the world and everything in it than burnt to a crisp. Though perhaps the sight of a nice young fireman coming to rescue him might pull him out of his post-divorce funk.

He threw on a dressing gown and made his way downstairs to gather in the freezing air with the rest of the residents as they waited for the issue to be resolved. At least he wouldn’t be alone in his misery there. He stood, watching the condensation from his breath make mist in the air, and dreamed about being back in the soft, comforting, warmth of his bed. 

Something made him look up just as a young man came rushing through the main doors, haphazardly pulling a thick jumper over his head. Rob frowned at the latecomer; did he not realise that you’re not supposed to faff around when a fire alarm is ringing and your life is quite potentially at serious risk? Just as he was glaring his disapproval at the latecomer their eyes met, and Robert was, in an instant, completely struck. The late-comer rolled his eyes a little and moved straight past him. Robert let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding in a great exhale of steam. 

The fire-alarm-incident was but a small blip in his newly single life in the city. Not that his life was all that different once his marriage was over; he ate, he slept, he went to work. If anything, he was even more anti-social now than Chrissie complained about him being before. After all, high-rise living does not lend itself to neighbourly comradery and he had yet to meet the person who lived in the flat opposite his despite now being there for a whole month.

He did, however, get a chance to look inside the opposite flat when the alarm went off yet again. Robert took a little longer to evacuate this time, as the alarm started ringing just as he was washing shampoo out of his hair. By the time he had got out of the shower, towelled down a little, and found a clean pair of trousers to chuck on (he wasn’t going out mostly naked in late November, thanks) he was probably the last person out of the building.   

As he grabbed his keys and pulled his door closed he realised that the door of the opposite flat was wide open. From what he could see it was a mirror of his, except with a far more ‘lived in’ look. There were pictures on the walls, presumably of family and friends, stacks of books and magazines of the coffee table, and what looked to be a bit of a car engine partially dissected on the dining table. Rob smiled at his neighbour’s eccentricities and flipped the latch on the inside of the door so that it wouldn’t lock when he pulled it closed. 

Like last time, the alarm was a false one. The maintenance guys were apologetic as they said that it was safe to return inside, but at least this time it was 7pm and not arse-o-clock in the morning. Still, Robert wished that his hair was a bit more presentable, not dripping water on his ears, when the cute guy he saw last fire alarm walked past him. He followed the guy up the stairs (he only checked out his ass a little bit) and saw him stop outside the flat opposite his.

He seemed puzzled by the fact that his door opened as he pushed it open, so Robert said “I saw it was open, so I put it on the latch before I came down. Didn’t want you to have your stuff stolen. Just in case.”

“Oh, that explains it” his neighbour replied. Rob was a little disappointed that his tone was more gruff than friendly, but they were in the city after all.  

His neighbour’s demeanour did not seem to have improved the next time they saw each other, even though he seemed to be saying a cosy goodbye to a fit young bloke. It was a Saturday, but Rob was heading into the office anyway to try and get a head start on some contract negotiations that he wanted to finalise asap. He was just fumbling with his keys as the door to the flat opposite opened. The man who appeared was blond, slim, and was clearly wearing last night’s clothes. The stranger was also grinning like the cat who got the cream, or perhaps more appropriately the twink who got the cream. Rob smiled at his own internal joke, and tried not to think about the way his neighbour’s mussed curls and sleepy grin gave him a little tingle across his shoulders.

Any jealousy he felt could clearly be attributed to his ongoing dry spell. And if he diverted to a club on the way home, picked up a stranger, and proceeded to fuck them through the mattress, well it was only because the incident in the morning had shown him that he needed to get his mojo back.

As the weeks moved on the conversations with his neighbour improved, if you can call the odd murmured “how’s your day” a conversation. Rob was learning his neighbour’s routine a bit: which nights he liked to go out, which takeaway he ordered from most often. The blond twink had not appeared again.

One day he took in a parcel for the neighbour and learnt that his name was Aaron Livsey. Later in the day, a Friday which meant Chinese takeaway, he knocked on the door to return it. Rob flashed his best grin and made a comment about the footie match playing in the background (a feet in itself given that Robert much preferred rugby) but no invitation to come in an watch it together was forthcoming. Rob told himself he wasn’t disappointed, but he went to bed sulking.  

One evening he was in the kitchen making coffee when the sounds of conversation drifted into his flat. He guessed Aaron was having a party. Nothing he could complain about given that his neighbour was largely very quiet, though he did feel a bit miffed that no invitation had been extended to him. He was listening to the sounds of a man and woman conversing as they climbed the stairs, when all of a sudden he felt a bolt of recognition.

He put his head round his front door, just as the couple walked past.

“Victoria?”

She turned round, and there she was, Robert’s kid sister visiting his ~~sexy~~ surly neighbour.

“Robert!” she said, pulling him into a hug, “I knew I recognised this address!”

He was just about to ask her what she was doing outside his flat when Aaron’s door swung open. He looked in confusion at Rob and Victoria embracing.

“Aaron! You didn’t tell me you lived next to my brother!” she said.

“Oh, er no, I didn’t actually know his surname” Aaron admitted, sheepishly scratching the back of his head.

“Boys!” Vic exclaimed, “Rob this is my boyfriend Adam” she continued, gesturing to the young man who was with her, “he’s Aaron’s business partner, and we were just coming round to his for a celebratory dinner, weren’t we?”

“Yeah” says the boyfriend, “new contract.”

“Oh, what business are you in?” Rob asked, more for an excuse to continue the conversation and be invited inside than out of genuine interest. Luckily the plan worked, and he found himself ushered inside with his sister and her beu.

He fell right into the conversation, Adam keen to show off his business prowess (and, Robert thought, maybe wanting to impress his girlfriend’s big brother) even dragging Aaron into the conversation a bit. Rob even found himself replying in kind, and perhaps an equal measure of self-aggrandisement, that he had plenty of relevant business contracts, and that they ought to get in tough if there were new areas they wanted to expand in.

Aaron for the most part silently watched Robert carefully over a bowl of homemade chickpea curry, but Robert found that he didn’t really mind.

That was, until much later when Vic and Robert had gone home. Robert was just gearing himself up to make a move when Aaron interrupted him.

“We don’t need your handouts mate.”

Robert faltered, “I’m sorry, what?”

“You, with your business contacts,” Aaron explained, “It’s all very impressive and that, but we can make our own contacts thanks.”  
  
“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean offence” Rob said, “next time I want to help my sister’s boyfriend grow his business so that he can support her at culinary college I’ll keep my ideas to myself shall I?”

Ah crap, he hadn’t meant to be such an ass.

“Yeah, that sounds good” said Aaron with an equal amount of sass, “you know where the door is; you can show yourself out.”

Well, that was definitely not how he had wanted the evening to end, slung out in the corridor having been more snarky than sexy. Still, at least he’d been able to have a good and long conversation with Aaron and his friends, and he now knew way more about his neighbour than he had before.

Aaron was clearly passionate and driven. He had a quietness to him that could quickly be drawn into sarcasm and wit if given the right provocation. Now that Robert had had the chance to look at him a bit more closely he knew that there were a set of wrinkles around Aaron’s eyes that only appeared when he smiled and that his eyes were an icy blue that contrasted beautifully with his dark hair.  

And, oh dear, Robert might be forming a little crush on his neighbour.

Operation ‘seduce the guy next door’ started with a vengeance the following day. He altered his schedule so that he could leave his flat at 8 on-the-dot as Aaron did every morning.   

“Hey Aaron” he called out as they both opened their doors, “I just wanted to apologise for being a bit off yesterday. I was out of line. And I wanted to say thank you, for dinner, I didn’t mean to gate-crash like that.”

Aaron looked a bit taken aback, “nah you’re alright mate, it’s not a problem.”

He moved to jog down the stairs, and Robert was about to start planning his next move when he stopped and turned around.

“I guess I should say thanks too” he said, “for shutting my door that night of the fire-alarm.”

Robert had to cast his mind back to remember the incident, it was that long ago. “No problem mate” he said, “you would have done the same for me.”  
  
Aaron gave a short nod, and just a touch of a smile before leaving.

They continued like that for a while, short snippets of conversation in the corridors before and after work. But there was more neighbourliness there then there was before; Robert was thrilled when one night Aaron knocked on his door, sheepishly asking for a bit of milk for his tea because he’d forgotten to get any. And his mission to seduce his neighbour had some side benefits for Rob; Aaron had clearly swallowed his pride and he and Adam had discussed expanding their client list with a few of Rob's. Rob, having seen a few _Runner’s World_ magazines on Aaron’s coffee table had taken up jogging, and was really starting to see and feel the benefits of this in his thighs.

It was all a bit slow burn for Robert, but he was determined not to give up. There was just something about Aaron, a feeling that Robert had barely scratched the surface, that he couldn’t wait to open him up, to unwrap him like a present at Christmas.  

It was these thoughts, and some other more pleasant imaginings, that kept Robert awake one night, one hand on his cock the other pinching a nipple as he wondered if Aaron would tense or relax when Robert finally let him come. It was for this reason that he was able to get out of bed so fast when the fire alarm started ringing yet again. He made a mental note to himself to ask the maintenance guys if there was a long-standing issue with the alarms as he pulled his door closed.

Out on the corridor, Aaron’s door was still closed, and since they were being all neighbourly now Rob reckoned he ought to just knock on Aaron’s door to check he was alright. There was a muffled “come in” from inside when he knocked though, so Robert let himself in.

Aaron was standing, back-lit by the city lights, looking for something.

He was also naked.

Actually, that’s not quite true. He was mostly naked, bare, except for the black jock-strap that was at that moment framing his arse ever-so nicely. 

Robert’s brain completely short circuited. Aaron Livsey was wearing a jockstrap. Aaron Livsey had a lovely big package. Aaron Livsey had the cutest bottom Robert had ever seen.

Robert almost let out a whimper of disappointment when Aaron found the joggers he was looking for and covered his glorious arse from Robert’s view. Aaron chucked on a dressing gown and looked up to see Robert’s eyes completely wide and fixed on him. Even in the low light, Robert could see Aaron blush and, oh no, was that a flicker of shame?

They exited, waited for the building to be declared safe (another false alarm, Robert would have been composing a strongly worded letter had it not been for the fact that his brain had been completely reduced to mush by the glorious sight of Aaron’s behind) and they had climbed the stairs back to their floor together, which gave Robert another opportunity to stare at those peachy buttocks.

So, when Aaron said “since we’re already up, would you like to come in for a drink?” Robert was terribly pleased with himself that he actually managed to form words with his mouth.

Aaron flipped a few light switches and moved to the kitchen while Robert settled himself on the sofa. He turned the kettle on but then didn’t start to make tea or coffee. Instead, he seemed to be working up the courage to say something.

“Look about what you saw” Aaron said in a rush, “I know it looks bad but they’re all healed, and I’m much better than I ever was before, and I would really appreciate if you would stop staring at them because it’s getting a bit weird.”

Robert looked at him for a moment, and then said, “I’m sorry, I have no idea what you are talking about”

“My scars” Aaron explained, “I saw you staring at my scars.”

Robert didn’t quite know how to respond to that. “I didn’t see any scars mate” he explained, “you were wearing a jockstrap! I’m a red-blooded male, and you have a lovely arse. I was staring at your goods mate.”

“Not my arms?”

“Not your arms” Robert confirmed, “I could hardly see anything; there were no lights on. And well, my attention was elsewhere.”

Aaron stuttered for a bit, and Robert realised he needed to take charge if this conversation was going to have the outcome he wanted.

“You’re still wearing it aren’t you?” he said, leaning back into the sofa, spreading his legs a little.

“Pardon?”

“The jockstrap.”

Aaron shuffled his feet a little.

“Do you like the way it feels?” Robert continued. Aaron didn’t say anything, but Robert could see a slight blush creeping up his neck, “or is it more about the way it looks?”

He paused, letting Aaron weigh up the benifits of answering. “A bit of both, I guess” he finally replied.

“Yeah? Do you wear it for your lovers or just for yourself?”

Aaron looked at him for a bit, cast his gaze from Robert’s eyes to his crotch and then said, “I wear it for you.”

It was Robert’s turn to stutter.

“I was thinking about you, and I couldn’t sleep” Aaron said, moving a little closer, “I was thinking about how you look at me, like you see right through me, and I was thinking what I could do to get your attention elsewhere.”

“It worked” Robert replied, and gestured for Aaron to come join him on the sofa, “what else did you think about?”

“I thought about your hands, where you would touch me” Aaron said, sitting down beside him, “I thought about how you would like that you could just reach around and grab me, put your fingers in me. I think about your fingers a lot; they’re very distracting.”

Robert saw Aaron’s hand hovering a little, as if he wanted to caress Rob’s thigh, so Rob grabbed it and guided it to the top of his leg, then the inside of his thigh, and higher. He wanted Aaron to feel what he was doing to him. 

“I was next door” he confessed, “I couldn’t sleep either, thinking about you. I was wanking and I was thinking about what your skin tastes like, I was thinking about what sounds you make when you come. I was trying not to cry out, so you wouldn’t hear me”

Aaron moaned a little, and Rob pulls him into his lap, “I’m going to kiss you now, is that ok?” he asks.

Aaron nodded enthusiastically and they spent a lovely few minutes making out. Aaron's hand stoked up and down Rob’s arms and so after a while he took his top off, eager to feel the same motion on bare skin.

When he tried to do the same to Aaron however, he pulled away.

“Sorry, can we not?” Aaron said sheepishly.

“Sure, if that’s what you want” Rob replied. He could have just gone back to kissing him, but something made him say “is this about those scars you mentioned?”

Aaron sat back a bit, “I don’t like anyone seeing them. It’s why I freaked out a bit when I thought you had. It’s why I won’t go out without long sleeves.”

“Which is why you’re sometimes late out when the fire alarm rings?”

“I know, it’s stupid, I’m stupid” Aaron’s face fell.

“Hey no! Not at all” Robert said, “we don’t have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with. We can stop here, or just keep making out. Or we could leave the robe on, or turn the lights out?”

“You want to keep going?”

“Only if you do” Rob argues, “but yes, I’d like to keep going. I’d like to see where those fantasies of ours lead to. I’d like to get better acquainted, especially with this” Robert gave Aaron’s bottom a playful squeeze, found the waistband of the jockstrap and pulled.

“Lights out” Aaron breathed, “I can do lights out.”

“Yeah? Shall we take this to the bedroom?”

When there, Robert took every opportunity to be as careful as possible. He didn’t linger too much on Aaron’s arms or chest, but he gave his arse the seeing to they were clearly both longing for. Robert indulged Aaron’s obsession with his fingers, and Aaron delighted Robert when he moaned his name as he came. Both times.

They lay together for a little while, both getting their breath back, Rob trying to shake some feeling back into his toes. He thought that maybe Aaron would be keen to have him gone so that he wouldn’t have to see him in the morning light, but Aaron did no such thing. If anything, he snuggled closer into Rob’s body when he attempted to move.

So instead of leaving, Robert simply murmured, “I never thought being disturbed by a fire alarm at some ungodly hour could end so well.”

“Go to sleep you muppet” Aaron said, a smile in his voice.

 

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed (especially the anon who prompted)! You can find me on tumblr as iwillsendapostcard.


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